


Freelove

by Pardotje



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Neighbors, M/M, Single Dad Kihyun
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-30
Updated: 2018-02-12
Packaged: 2019-02-08 21:01:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12872934
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pardotje/pseuds/Pardotje
Summary: “We're sorry that we have to call you again while you're at work, but your daughter isn't feeling all too well and has a fever. We suspect that she catched a cold. Someone has to pick her up.”Kihyuns stomach drops.





	1. Jungle Boogie

Kihyun probably has been naïve when he had expected that he would feel relieved as soon as he and Miyoung were through with their divorce, that he would get back some part of his old self as he no longer had to spend all his time and energy on his now ex-wife, working his ass off to offer her a comfortable life all while stressing over how he could make their relationship last longer.  
It was true, Miyoung herself was no longer taking up most of the space in his life, but their past was none that could be erased.

 

***

He wakes up to the quiet sound of something rustling. With a heavy sigh he opens his eyes and takes a look at his phone. Half an hour before his alarm would go off. He considers if he should just simply stay awake and take his time to get ready for the day or use the last few minutes to get some more sleep. He takes a look to his right, but the space of the huge bed that was supposed to be occupied was empty.  
He sat up straight, immediately knowing that the lady that was supposed to be next to him was already awake and wandering around the flat to entertain herself, probably in a way that she knew she wasn't supposed to, considering how quiet she tried to be.  
Alarmed he got up to find her in the living room, sitting on the couch completely covered in baby powder, pressing the bottle to puff out more of the white to watch it fall. When she realized she was caught, she just stares at her father before demonstrating once again what she was doing with a (probably meant to be excusing) smile.  
There went Kihyuns extra time to take it slow this morning. 

Dahee wasn't all too happy with suddenly taking a shower, starting to cry when Kihyun didn't allow her to play with her rubber ducky, but it was _her own fault for playing with something else than her toys_ Kihyun explains while washing her face in a hurry.  
The time she was clean and dressed again, Kihyun only had ten minutes left to get ready himself.  
Like a bee he buzzed through the rooms, getting dressed, giving Dahee something to drink, taking care of his hair as good as he could, grab something he could quickly eat before work, turning off the lights in every room, looking for Dahees other shoe before finally carrying his daughter to the car, already having to run.

As he drops his daughter off at the daycare centre, he barely has time to properly tell her goodbye, pressing a rushed kiss to her cheek before already running back to his car. 

**

Before he had Dahee, he would have ignored some red lights or the one or another speed limit to get to work on time, but now he didn't dare to any more. Too risky. She had to live without a mother already, better to reduce the risk of dying in a car accident and stick to the traffic regulations.  
“Which wouldn't be a problem if you all would just FUCKING DRIVE” Kihyun cusses, turning off the happy voices of children singing nursery rhymes. The sudden silence didn't calm him down, but at least didn't add to the flame of aggression that started burning in him. He would be late to work.

**

It took more energy than he wanted to admit to pretend for his daughters sake that he was in a good mood and patient when he picked her up from the daycare. Restlessness was still buzzing under his skin, mind unable to calm down from a busy workday.  
Silently he watched Dahee trying to put on her shoes by herself (what now already took up to five minutes). Whenever he tried to help her, she would stubbornly grunt and hide her feet, turning away from him.  
A big red cross would mark the day in his calendar when Dahees 'I can do this myself' phase was over.  
He looks over to the daycare teachers who had to stay longer with every minute that Dahee daddled.  
He knew how much it sucked to stay longer for someone else, he really did, but he pretended to be too oblivious to realize, even dared to smile at them brightly like it was just too funny that it took Dahee so long.  
If he apologized for being late, he would only open the door for a conversation he prefered to avoid.  
That he had to talk to his boss to let him go on time (like he hadn't done that already), how he needed to find a new wife soon because a child needs a father _and_ a mother, not to mention obvious time management problems would be solved if he had a woman by his side. Yeah, he totally got it. He wasn't a complete humanbeing anymore. How does he still function, without a wife by his side but a daughter?

Dahee brings him back to reality with a deep sigh of hers, staring at her shoes like she was questioning her whole life.  
“Am I allowed to help you now?” Kihyun squads down and picks up one of her shoes.  
Dahee grunts again and dramatically crosses her arms in front of her chest, shaking here head so hard that it looked like she's shaking her whole torso, an angry but adorable pout on her face. “Never!”  
Kihyun couldn't help but laugh.  
“Aah, where did you pick that up from?” he asks amused and watches as Dahee tries to keep up the pout but a smile starts growing on her lips instead.  
“Come on, I'll put on your shoes”  
Dahee repeats her act but doesn't hide her feet anymore, sitting still. The only reason she kept up her pout was to earn another laugh from her father, which he gladly gave her.  
Kihyuns heart grows in moments like these and he remembers why he would never ever regret his decision to keep her.

**

Kihyun considers that maybe his usual-shitty-day turned into an unusual-not-so-shitty-day as he enters the elevator to his apartment with an already asleep Dahee on his arm. He could clean up the mess that his daughter had produced this morning, take a shower and maybe even watch a whole movie before having to go to bed.  
He was already mentally going through his kitchen cupboards in search for snacks, as his thoughts came to a sudden stop as the elevator doors opened.  
The usually empty hallway that only leads to three apartments was filled with several boxes, a mattress, a couch and several electric devices that Kihyun assumed were used for music.  
Was one of his neighbours moving out?  
Confused he took a big step over a rolled up carpet, deciding that today was not the day he would think too much about it, as a familiar voice calls out to him.

“Hyung!”  
Kihyun turns around and a smile instantly grows on his face.  
“Changkyun” he says pleasantly surprised, stepping closer. “What are you doing here? Are you moving in? I didn't know this apartment was empty?” he asks, unable to control his sudden excitement of seeing the other so unexpectedly.  
The younger shakes his head and smiles shyly. “It's not empty, Jooheon still lives here. I just move in as well. We're best friends and study at the same university and you know... standing on your own feet and stuff.”  
“Ah, I see, that's cool!”  
A well-built blonde man appears in the door frame of Changkyuns new home and Kihyun recognizes him as his neighbour.  
He has a phone and a flyer in his hand and was about to say something as he spots Kihyun.  
He lived on their floor as well, but his apartment next to the one Changkyun was moving into, but Kihyun couldn't recall his name no matter what. He had introduced himself when he moved in nearly a year ago, but Kihyun never cared to remember it. He usually was too much in a rush anyway for small talk on the hallway.  
The blonde neighbour greets him anyway with an irritating, blinding smile.  
Kihyun shortly greets back before he turns to Changkyun again.  
“Waah, Dahee has grown so much” the younger whispers, his eyes growing wide as they wander the little girl in Kihyuns arms. He steps closer and softly caresses her cheeks.  
“Yeah, she's growing in high speed these days. She walks and talks now too.” Kihyun says, kind of proud. “It's really been a while since you visited us the last time. How's your mother doing? Whenever I tried to reach her nobody picked up the phone or vice versa. Guess we've all been busy”

In truth though he never had tried to call her.  
Changkyun and his mother lived in the same building as him, but the only reason they knew each other was that her and Miyoungs mother were friends.  
It must have been one of those mum things he didn't understand, but suddenly she was part of their life like she was related to them, guiding Miyoung through her time as an expecting mother and beyond.  
She was a nice person, no question, but as soon as it was obvious that his marriage was breaking, he started to avoid her.  
He didn't want to hear from yet another another person what he could have done better.  
Changkyun though used to be like a younger brother to him, paying visits every now and then to see Dahee and eager to be of help. He wasn't as old fashioned and close-minded as his parents, constantly trying to escape their tight grip on him.  
Kihyun suddenly feels bad about how easily he had dropped him as a result of him simply being her son.

“I quickly put Dahee to bed and help you, okay? If I had known, I would have tried to come home earlier” he says to make up for the time they hadn't seen each other, even though he knew he in no way would've made it home earlier.  
“Ah no it's okay, you've probably been working the whole day.” Changkyun assures him, holding up his hands in defense. “I have enough help but thank you anyway.”  
In that moment, a third person appears in the hallway.  
“We should probably move the couch tomorrow, it's too late alread– ah, hello.”  
The redhead that probably was Jooheon, at least that was the name that Changkyun mentioned and Kihyun knew he lived in this apartment, bowed politely and immediately lowered his voice to not wake up Dahee.  
“We're sorry for the mess in the hallway, we wanted to be done already but it didn't work out the way we planned.”  
With shocked faces, Changkyun and the blonde neighbour quickly join in apologizing.  
Under other circumstances Kihyun may indeed have been pissed at the way the hallway looked like, especially without a warning, but seeing that Jooheon was really sorry about that and it meant that he would be able to meet Changkyun from time to time, on top of Dahee still being sound asleep in his arms, set him into a good mood.  
So he just shakes his head and waves the issue away, smiling at Changkyun.  
“I see you're in good hands but if you need help anyway, just quietly knock.” he offers him, secretly glad he somehow escaped to actually having to do something, especially when strangers were involved.  
“We were about to order pizza, maybe you want to come over and grab a slice after you put Dahee to bed?” Changkyun carefully asks as Kihyun was about to retreat.  
Kihyun takes a look at the sleeping face of his daughter and thinks about the offer.  
“I'm sure your baby phone reaches to here.” the younger adds. “We would hear if she wakes up”.  
Kihyuns heart throbs at Changkyuns thoughtfulness and how eager he was, but he really needed to shower and an evening in front of the tv all by himself sounded more tempting than sharing Changkyun with two strangers, neighbours or not.  
As if he sensed Kihyuns decision, the blonde suddenly raised the flyer in his hand.  
“Also, the pizza is on me!” he says with way too much enthusiasm, obviously irritating Jooheon and Changkyun as well. “We could finally come together as neighbours, since we all live on the same floor and never really spent time together?”  
Dahee starts to move in Kihyuns arms, the sudden outburst of the other has obviously been too loud.  
“Ssh ssh, keep on sleeping” he tries to lull her back to sleep while the blonde neighbour soundlessly whispers 'sorry' a hundred times.  
“It's okay, she will fall asleep again in a moment I think” Kihyuns whispers, uncomfortable with how often the blonde apologizes, “and thank you for the offer, really, but my daughter really needs to go to bed and I'm tired as well. Maybe some other time.”  
He bows slightly.  
“Good night and thank you for taking care of Changkyunnie.”  
With that, Kihyun leaves.

 

*** 

 

“We're sorry that we have to call you again while you're at work, but Dahee isn't feeling all too well and has a fever. We suspect that she catched a cold. Someone has to pick her up.”  
Kihyuns stomach drops.

**

Of course it starts to rain the second Kihyun leaves the store.  
With a frustrated noise that earns him a few strange looks, he puts Dahee and his shopping bag down and wraps his daughter into his denim jacket.  
“We're nearly home and you can sleep, okay?” he tries to reassure his silently crying daughter and places a kiss on her way too warm forehead.  
He felt sorry for her, dragging her to the pharmacy and the supermarket afterwards, but he couldn't cook something without any ingredients and what Dahee needed the most right now was a hot soup instead of the leftover pancakes from the day before.  
He picks up Dahee with a sad sigh (who immediately clings to him like a whiny koala), grabs his bag and hurries home. Maybe he _should_ have taken the car.

The rain intensifies and so does Dahees crying, and the walk that usually just takes maximum five minutes stretches to an endless torture of ten.  
“I'm so sorry, I'm walking as fast as I can” he mumbles desperately while his arms got heavier and heavier, starting to hurt.  
When they finally reach the elevator of their apartment building, Kihyuns clothes are dripping wet, slowly forming a little puddle where he stands.  
Dahees crying reached its peak, echoing twice as loud inside the elevator.  
Kihyun tries his best to calm her down, but she is already past the point of listening.  
He quietly apologizes to the old man that joins them on the third floor and stares at the ceiling, practically witnessing how a headache started to form behind his temples.

“We're home baby” Kihyun mumbles and kisses Dahees head as the elevator doors finally open after a lift that felt like two hours, escaping the displeased grunts and stares of that old grumpy asshole.  
He apologized for Dahees crying, what was he supposed to do more? Suffocate his daughter so she would stop crying? It's was just an elevator ride.  
He cusses under his breath, Dahee not listening anyway, and starts aggressively typing his code into the keypad, which turned out to be especially difficult today since his arms already hurts like hell anyway from carrying his child, as – _THUMB – the content of his shopping bag suddenly broke through the bottom and landed on the floor._  
In disbelieve Kihyun just watches while every emotion leaves his body, Dahees nothing more but a background noise.  
All he could do was stare, wondering what he had done wrong to deserve this.  
A wave of tiredness overwhelms him at the thought alone of him picking up his groceries and cleaning up the milk that had burst open, not to mention calming Dahee down and putting her to bed before, which alone would already drain more energy than he had.  
Why was this happening?

__

Kihyun quickly turns around as the door opposite to his apartment opens and his blond neighbour steps out, followed by a dog.  
Their eyes meet, but Kihyuns mind is too empty – or maybe too full – to say something. Was it really necessary that someone saw his misery? Explaining what happened would made him look no less like an idiot.

The eyes of the blonde wander to the ground, opening his mouth in surprise.  
“Ooh no, let me help you!” he says as he hurries over and starts to collect Kihyuns purchase that rolled over the floor instantly.  
“No no no, just ignore it, I will pick it up myself” Kihyun says ashamed, waking up from his trance.  
“Ah, I'm not in a hurry, it's not a problem, let me help.” the other replies, even dares to smile at him.  
Rage suddenly flares up in Kihyun. Can't the other see that he just wants to be alone and forget this whole goddamn shitty day?! That the sunshine smile didn't help at all to cheer up his mood, just confirmed that everyone except him had a good, normal life.  
“Please, let me do it” he says, trying to sound composed, but obviously didn't succeed as the other slowly puts down the cans he picked up with a sad face.  
“Okay, but if you ever need help, let me know, okay?” the blonde asks carefully and gets up again.  
“Thank you, but we're okay” Kihyun answers curtly and turns around to type in the code for his door again.  
He really didn't want to know what the other must think of him.  
Then again, if he just looked 10% as miserable as he felt, he knew it anyway.  
He closed his eyes and bit his lip, Dahee crying into his ear.  
He had to stay strong. It couldn't get worse.

But it did.


	2. Kihyun, the stars shine bright

Kihyun knew it wasn't Dahees fault that the only way she knew to relief her discomfort was crying, but he couldn't help but to be annoyed. He loved her more than he ever thought he was capable of loving someone, but there was only as much as a simple man could take.  
She was lying in bed, changed into dry clothes, her warm plush bunny heated by her side, even allowed to have her pacifier for tonight, but no matter what Kihyun did, she preferred whining over falling asleep, no matter how tired she already was.  
“Do you want to switch? I go to bed and you clean up the mess in the hallway?” he suggests, waiting for Dahee to answer.  
The little girl though just turned around in bed, gasping for air between two sobs before pressing her face into the pillow like the whole world was weighing down on her shoulders.  
Kihyun immediately feels sorry.  
“Try to sleep darling, okay? I’ll come to bed soon as well.” Kihyun asks with a defated sigh and gets up from bed after pressing a kiss to Dahees sweaty hair, admitting to himself that his thoughts had spiraled down into something absolutely ridiculous.   
He turns on one of Dahees audio dramas even though she had said no to them earlier, switches of the light in turn for their star light projector and looks back to his sobbing daughter. It hurt him seeing her like that, unable to make her feel better. He felt powerless, which was the last thing a father wanted to feel like, but there indeed was nothing he could do right now except waiting for her to calm down and fall asleep eventually. Some rest was what she needed the most now and that was something only Dahee could give herself.  
*

With still dripping hair from the rain since he had only dried off his daughter and not himself, Kihyun grabs the paper towels and a plastic basket from the kitchen before stepping out into the hallway again, the mess he left behind still untouched.  
He stared at it for a while once again, repeatedly wondering what he had done to deserve this, until he crouched down with a heavy, unhappy sigh to pick up everything that somehow escaped the spilled milk before starting the actual cleaning.  
In the distance he could hear Dahee getting quieter and quieter until her wailing dies out completely. Finally. He already had started to worry that it might not be a usual cold but something more serious, but if she just had taken her time to fall asleep, then everything probably was alright so far.  
   
*

“Done” Kihyun mumbles with relief as he picks up the dumb plastic bag that still lay on the hallway floor, the last indication of the chaos he had caused together with the wet paper towels in his hand. Now all he had to do was put away his grocery and take a shower before he could take care of -   
He was about to step back into his apartment as a thought hit him, his blood suddenly turning to ice.  
In panic he scans the hallway, eyes growing wide.   
In long strides he walks back into the apartment, searching in the kitchen, the living room, picking up his jacket thrice, even risking to wake Dahee up as he searches in the bedroom as well.  
“Fuck!” he cusses as he scans the hallway once again. He forgot his bag in the store.  
Now that he was sure it wasn't in his apartment, he very vividly remembers how he left it on the counter.   
He closed his eyes, rubbing his temples with the heel of his palms while trying to figure out how he was going to solve this. He couldn't wake up Dahee again when she finally found her peace in dreamland, dragging her through the rain once had already been enough. She needed a rest now.  
But he had nobody to call in a case like this....  
Changkyun!  
He felt a wave of relief as he remembered that Changkyun was living just one door away now and surely wouldn't mind watching over a sleeping Dahee for a few minutes.  
Running his fingers through his wet hair he rang the bell and waited for someone to open, hoping Changkyun would be home. As he could make out no noise inside the youngers apartment, he glanced at his watch and noticed that it was probably still too early for them to be back from university.  
Restlessly walking up and down the hallway he went through his options. Even if he called his mom – something he dreaded more than anything else – it would take her way too long until she could be here. His next instinct told him to get his phone as if he could magically google a solution, but his phone of course was in exactly the bag that he was missing.  
Surely Dahee was at an age now where one could leave her by herself for ten minutes, but not leave her alone completely, asleep or not.  
Maybe he was lucky and his bag was still in the store or one of the people working there took his bag in until Dahee finally woke up or Changkyun returned.   
Then again, considering his luck so far and remembering how the white haired guy that worked there didn't look like someone who paid too much attention to his surrounding, his chances of getting his bag back faded with every minute.

He heard footsteps on the stairwell and secretly hoped it was Changkyun coming to the rescue, how unlikely that may be considering the time and how nobody took the stairs to the eighth floor.  
Except maybe the super fit blond neighbour who stepped through the door, his dog in his arms and one of his earbuds dangling from his shoulders.   
He looked at Kihyun in surprise, then changed his mind and bowed shyly, mumbling a greeting one could barely understand. That his effort to help had been refused seemed to had left an impression Kihyun regretted now.  
“Umm, excuse me?” he asks with a sore voice, the embarrassment sinking deeper into his bones the moment the words left his lips. He started to sweat, heat rising in his cheeks.  
This was the best option he had now, right? The blonde had been so desperate to help him before, he would surely be glad to help him out now... right?  
Kihyun felt horrible.  
He stepped closer to the blonde who was putting the dog down, either throwing his pride away or gathering his courage, he couldn't tell anymore, as he asked once again with more force.  
“Excuse me?”  
“Huh?” the blonde asks in confusion as he gets up, realizes then that he still had one of his earbuds blasting music into his ear, quickly getting rid of it. “Yes?”

“Could you help me out for like, at worst, half an hour?” Kihyuns asks, feeling like he just ran a marathon as he was so nervous that breathing got hard. “You don't have to do anything, it's just, uhmm, my daughter is sick and finally sleeping but I left my bag in the store and yeah, I just want to get it back quickly.  
I'll hurry I swear, if you could just sit in my living room for a while and watch some tv or something? I would just give you the baby phone and code for my door so you could come over in case she wakes up but I don't know if the baby phone reaches to you and-” “Yes, sure.”  
Kihyun stares at his neighbour in disbelieve, not sure if he heard right, still feeling like he had to explain god and the world before he would get an okay from the neighbour he had shown the cold shoulder to ever since he had moved in.

“My plans for today are down the river thanks to the rain anyway and I'd be glad to help you out.” the blonde explains with a smile. “But uhmm... would it be okay if the dog waits with me?”  
Kihyun looks down at the dog who was busy sniffing the air, curious about the spot where Kihyun had spilled his groceries a while ago.  
“He's not my dog and I don't know how he will react if I leave him alone, even for a short while. He is a well-behaved, a quiet guy actually, but also a scaredy cat.” the blonde adds as if he was the one who asked the other for a favor and not the other way round.  
“Oh god yes sure, of course!” he answers way more enthusiastic than he normally would, not entirely liking the idea of a dog he didn't know in his apartment, but he would accept an elephant if he could just end this day in peace. “’Thank you so much, you’re a lifesaver”  
As the blonde beams at him with a smile, Kihyun couldn't help but automatically respond with a smile as well.

**

The second the rain hits down on him again, Kihyuns mood drops back to zero.  
The cold starts to sink into his bones and so did the feeling that he was a failure.  
He was alone now, no daughter he could focus on, no distraction, no one to be angry at except himself.  
How could he drag his sick daughter through the rain? Why didn’t he take the car? Why did he forget his bag? Why was she sick anyway? Didn’t he dress her warm enough?  
Hot tears start to sting behind his eyes as he kept asking himself these questions, the biggest of his worries getting to him at last.  
Has it been his own fault he lost his job today? Had there been a way to avoid it? Maybe if he had tried harder to explain the situation to his boss...  
He looked up into the sky, blinking away the raindrops that now mixed with his tears.  
His whole life revolved around Dahee, she was the sun that kept his entire universe together and he really did everything that was in his power to give her the life she deserved, so why did he always end up in situations like this??  
And now he had left her with a stranger, neighbour or not, because he was too dumb to take care of his belongings, forgetting that bag with all the essential stuff inside.  
What was he supposed to do when his bag was gone? The timing couldn’t have been worse after the events of this day. Dahee deserved better and yet he was all she had. This wasn’t fair.  
Biting down on his lower lip he starts walking faster, slapping his own face. This wasn’t the time nor the place for that.  
When he reached the store a few minutes later, the tears had already stopped. He still looked miserable as he took a glance at his own reflection, but at least one couldn’t tell that he had been crying.  
He feels uncomfortable as he steps into the store, leaving a trail of drops behind him as he makes his way to the counter. He still feels vulnerable, wasn't all too sure if he could keep his countenance if his bag was gone for real, but he tried his best to look like everything was alright.  
As soon as the white haired guy spots him, he quickly disappears behind the counter, reappearing with Kihyuns bag in his hands.  
“You’re here for this one, right?” he asks with a bright smile, obviously proud that he remembered him.   
“Yes, oh my god!” Kihyun shouts as he presses his bag to his chest, relieve washing over him. “Thank you so much, oh god, for a moment I really thought I wouldn't ever see my bag again. I was already making appointments to get new papers in my mind.” he says with an embarrassed laugh  
“Ah, no problem, happens all the time” the white haired cashier replies with a casual shrug, “you’re not the first and won’t be the last. We also got tons of umbrellas people forgot here and never bother to pick them. Should we lend you one?”

**

Even though Kihyun had tried to refuse the offer of the cashier, he had ended up with a flashy red umbrella that he now placed in front of his apartment. He was soaking wet anyway, the umbrella had made no difference in the end.  
He quietly enters the apartment, whispering a “hello” for the blonde who ,hopefully, was still around, as he hears the very familiar giggle of his daughter...?  
Quickly putting on his slippers, he enters the living room to a sight he hadn't been expecting.  
His neighbour was lying on the floor, Dahee instead of being in her bed by his side, using the dog as a pillow which seems to bring her endless joy.

“Oh, has she been awake for long?” Kihyun asks as he approaches, not sure if he should feel guilty for making his neighbour actually babysit or not.  
The blonde sits up straight immediately. “Not long after you left she suddenly appeared in the living room. We didn't wake her, I swear!” he answers while Dahee shouts “Look, a dog!” on repeat to get her dads attention.  
Kihyuns squats down to his daughter and their guest, carefully brushing some of Dahees hair out of her face.   
“Funny, how did he get in here, huh?” he asks with a soft smile. “Are you dreaming maybe? I'm sure I brought you to bed.”   
Dahee laughs cheekily at that but doesn't move, probably to tired, no matter how much she wanted to deny that.  
“I hope she didn't cause you any trouble?” Kihyun asks, knowing his daughter usually becomes hyperactive when she was tired.  
“She cried when she realized that you were not here but a stranger, stopped though as soon as she saw Mandu”   
“Mandu!” Dahee automatically responds and points at the dog.  
“Aah, the dog is named Mandu?” Kihyuns asks his daughter with a smile, who proudly nods.  
His neighbour laughs at her cute antiques. “Usually Mandu is scared of children, but he seems to like your daughter.”  
As if Mandu wanted to demonstrate what his current owner just told, he recklessly jumps up as Dahee has a sudden coughing fit.  
Kihyun and the blonde both quickly put their hands under Dahees head before it could hit the ground as her living pillow was suddenly moving.  
“Ah look, Mandu wants to go to bed now. Maybe you should too then?” Kihyun hastily says as he gets up, taking Dahee into his arms and smiling as bright as possible as he realizes that the change in the dogs behaviour seems to have upset her.  
“Say bye to Mandu! We'll see you next time” he adds, waving to the dog before taking Dahees hand and waving with it as well.  
The blonde plays along and grabs Mandus paw as well, waving back. “Good Night Dahee” he says in a weird high-pitched voice but immediately has to laugh about himself.  
“Mandu goes to bed?” Dahee asks, rubbing her eyes. The exhaustion was taking its toll now.  
“Of course he does, he sleeps in his dog bed...”  
He turns around and mouthes to his neighbour that he will back in a minute before he goes back to convincing his daughter into bedtime the second time this day.

*  
Kihyun carefully closes the bedroom door behind him and steps back into the living room with a set of dry clothes in his arms, an apologetic smile on his lips.  
“I'm so sorry, this didn't went like planned. Actually nothing did today, but I could've sworn Dahee slept when I left. I really didn't want you to babysit her out of the blue.”  
“It was really no problem, I like kids. If you ever need help again, let me now” the blonde replies cheerily, still sitting on the floor and rubbing Mandus belly. “You can ask me anytime to help out again, it was fun even though she was sick. Your daughter is really cute!”  
“I... yes. Yes she is” Kihyun agrees, smiling in awe as he thinks of his daughter. It probably was weird that he suddenly felt all this warmth in his chest by the mention of his daughter as he just saw her a minute ago, but getting told about his precious little girl by an outsider made him look at her from a different perspective.  
“Anyway, thank you so much, I don't know what I would've done without you! How can I make up for that?” he asks, stopping his thoughts as he saw in the others smile that his fatherly love has very obviously gotten the better of him.  
“It was no big deal, really. If you want I can stay a little longer so you can take a shower, in case Dahee wakes up again?” the blonde suggests and looks up at him, smiling. That smile really never seems to leave his face, to the point where it should be suspicious, but all he could see in his eyes was kindness, no sign of evil plotting or ulterior motives.  
Maybe he really was just one of those very few people on this planet who were nice and liked to help for no specific reasons. The world needed more people like him.  
“I'm fine, thank you.” he declines the offer anyway though, not wanting to strain his luck any longer. He gets rid of his wet shirt, throwing it carelessly in front of his bathroom door. He had to clean everything anyway after rummaging through every corner in search of his bag a while ago.  
“Have you eaten yet?” he then asks, putting on a warm, dry sweater.  
“I'm a pretty good cook and would really like to make up for the sudden babysitting session.  
Wanna stay for dinner?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this far (〃´∀｀)
> 
> This chapters title is shamelessly taken from the song "Momoko the stars shine bright" from the Shimotsuma Monogatari OST


	3. Flowers on the Wall

“And you said yes, stayed for dinner and somehow managed to mess it up?”

 

“No, even worse!” Hoseok whines and sinks deeper into his plastic chair. “I panicked and said _no_!”

  
Jooheon escapes a loud laugh and Changkyun has to snort, but Hoseok lets it slip in favour of sulking into his can of beer. He was sitting on his balcony, Mandu at his feet, meat sizzling on his table top grill that he gladly shared with Jooheon and Changkyun, who both sat on their balcony right next to his.

It was their daily routine, sitting together this way and talking about whatever crossed their minds.   
He sighs and recalls once again the events of his day.

How Kihyun had harshly rejected his help even though he had looked really close to his breaking point.

The ridiculous way Mandu had tried to avoid the rain, awkwardly trying to jump over puddles or hide under park banks on their very short walk, and how he ran into Kihyun again when he had returned to his apartment.

How Kihyun had constantly opened and closed his hands unconsciously while explaining his situation.

Hoseok still wondered why his neighbour had looked at him like he had asked him for the impossible, even though all Hoseok had to do was sit in his living room and wait.

Even if his daughter hadn't been asleep, Hoseok had offered his help so many times before, the other should have known it was more than okay to ask him. _Especially_ if his daughter was such an adorable girl like Dahee.

Hoseok had been unable to hold in his cooing the second she had left the bedroom dressed in a fluffy onesie, tiredly rubbing her eyes with her tiny fist while her other hand was dragging a plush bunny over the floor.

He had greeted her when her eyes met his and carefully told her that her dad would be back soon, trying not to scare her.

She had immediately started to cry anyway, asking in the most heartbreaking way for her dad (at least he thinks she did, the pacifier in her mouth had made it hard to understand her).

Hoseok had tried to calm her down in several ways, from repeatedly telling her that they knew each other because he lived next door to singing some Pororo songs to suggesting some games, but in the end it was the fat sausage of a jack russel terrier named Mandu that caught her attention and calmed her down. She had opened up quickly after that, stealing Hoseoks heart instantly.

He was sure Kihyun had finally been able to feel that he was sincere guy after he took such good care of Dahee, as something in his eyes had shifted the moment he saw them together. He no longer was looking at him like he was an enemy that needed to be shut out.

Mentally he had already congratulated himself for finally being accepted as a nice neighbour whose help would be accepted in the future, how wholesome it would be when they all could come together as neighbours, Changkyun knowing Kihyun for years the way he knew Jooheon, who again was best friends with Changkyun - but his mind went blank the moment Kihyun took off his shirt right in front of him.

Hoseok had thought he was better than this, had pointedly ignored how the wet shirt has clung to Kihyuns body after he ran through the rain, but obviously he wasn't. He was the worst.

 

When he was offered the meal, he fled.

 

“This was my chance to get closer to him and I ruined it. Ah, his daughter was so adorable... ” he whines and looks over to Jooheon and Changkyun like a beaten puppy. “Do you think I got bonus points because his daughter likes Mandu?”

Said dog looks up from his basket at the mention of his name, but decides to fall asleep again.

 

“And you really claim that you're not _completely into him_?” Jooheon asks between two sips, looking at Hoseok like he was seriously curious and not teasing him on purpose.

“I'm not!” Hoseok protests, cheeks immediately getting hot. “I-I won't deny that I think he's _attractive_ but that's all. I'm not dumb enough to pine after a straight single father that has an ex-wife. Jooheon, I can see in the window what you're mouthing to Changkyun! I'm really not!”

The redhead turns around and looks at Hoseok with his best innocent baby face imitation. “Then why are you so desperate to get to know him - _again_?” he asks, hinting at the last few times Hoseok had whined at Jooheon about his efforts of getting closer to the father opposite his apartment.

“I don't know.” Hoseok pouts and buries his head in his hands. “I have no idea why I keep trying over and over again.”

With a deep sigh he sits up again. “You know when you're in a restaurant and the waiter or waitress is really attractive and you are super nice and charming for no reason?” he tries to explain, torn between being serious and whining a bit more. “You know you won't get anything out of it, you're not even aiming for it, but you do it anyway? I guess it's something like that.”

He looks at his neighbours, who slowly nod as they try to wrap their head around how Hoseok had explained his feelings.

“He always looks so serious and stressed, I can't help but feel the need to help. Have you ever seen him not being in a rush?” Hoseok asks, leaning forward to rest his arms on the railing of the balcony, recalling how the stress had left his handsome neighbour for a short moment after he had told him how adorable his daughter was. He really wanted him to look like this more often, if not always.

  
  


“Last week I saw him running down the stairs because the elevator took him too long.” Jooheon says, releasing Hoseok from his monologue while handing over a plate, asking for more meat. “If he had waited just a few seconds longer he could have just taken it.”

“I feel sorry for him.” Changkyun says and looks up into the clear night sky. “He wasn't like that when I got to know him.”

“What was he like before the divorce?” Hoseok finally asks the question he hadn't dared to ask before. He didn't want Changkyun to think that he was _too_ interested in their neighbour. He really wasn't, usually he didn't care too much, but sometimes his attention shifts back to the handsome father whenever he had contact with him.

He doubted though that Changkyun would understand the fine difference.

Changkyun was Jooheons best friend, so he hadn't hesitated to admit that he was gay when the topic came up one day because he was sure he wouldn't mind just like Jooheon, but sometimes it was hard to guess what was going on on the other's head.

 

“He was very talkative and he smiled a lot” Changkyun answers after a moment. “He also liked to tease and was caring to the point it got annoying.”.

“Ah don't lie, you love it when someone takes care of you” Jooheon says and starts imitating Changkyun. “Noona, would you listen over the beats I am working on? Noona, could you help me with my calculations? Hyung, have you heard how the professor praised me for my keyboard skills?”

The youngest blushes and glares at Jooheon, huffing in protest (which sounded more adorable than frustrated in Hoseoks opinion).

“Anyways” Changkyun continues, shifting his attention back to Hoseok, “as much has he has changed, it will probably still nag at him that he couldn't make it up to you that you helped him out. He tried to buy me food for a month because I went to the store for him once, so I guess you will have another chance one day”

 

A few days later it looks like he gets that chance while taking a walk in the park with Mandu.

 

It finally had starts to feel like summer, the colors that spring had carefully hinted now in full bloom while the sun was shining down on them.

Passing by the playground, he spots Dahee at the top of one of the slide before she cheerfully slides down into the arms of her father.

Hoseok considers for a second if he should just approach them, say hello, but he knows better than to do that. He has no particular reason to talk to them, which means that the second Kihyun decides he doesn't want to talk him anymore - which usually meant, right after exchanging greetings – it would be pretty awkward and that was not the way he wanted to grab his second chance.

Hoseok decides to go an extra round with Mandu instead, who is staying with him anyway to lose some weight. It wouldn't harm him. Neither would a third round.

Halfway into his fourth round though, Mandu decides it was enough and flops down to the ground as soon as he sees the chance to as Hoseok stops for a second to check his phone.

“I think you're right Mandu.” Hoseok admits with a sigh as he sees how much time he already has wasted in the park and puts away his phone. “That was embarrassing and more than enough for today. I'm not _that_ desperate to talk to him again.”

The dog looks up to him with expecting eyes. “Come on, let's go home.”

The promise of going home is enough for Mandu to get up again no matter how exhausted he is. Hoseok wonders once again if dogs really weren't capable of the human language as the he went left, down the path that lead to the apartment building instead of going further the way he already walked the three times before.

Hoseok looks back one last time to the playground, realizing that his second chance was no longer playing there but coming along his way.

“Mandu, hurry, poop or something” Hoseok whispers to the dog, hoping the way he slows down wasn't too obvious. If Kihyun and Dahee passed by him, maybe Dahee would recognizes the dog and stop, which would hopefully lead to a small conversation with his neighbour.

(Hoseok could already hear Jooheon laughing at him in the back of his mind. That much to him not being _that_ desperate.)

 

“...du! Mandu!”

Hoseok heartbeat suddenly quickens as he hears Dahee calling for them.

He turns around and sees the little girl running in their direction, her two tiny pigtails adorably bouncing while she desperately tries to catch up with them.

Kihyun follows her with some distance, calling after her that she should approach Mandu slowly. Their eyes meet and Kihyun smiles at him.

Hoseoks heart makes an excited jump that was absolutely uncalled for.

He crouches down and pets Mandu, whose panting looks a lot like he was cheerily laughing at him.

“Behave buddy. I won't make you use the stairs tomorrow if you don't mess this up, ok?”

 

Dahee quickly closes the distance between them, calling for Mandu who finally turns his attention to her.

Getting all excited about the sudden attention of the dog, she promptly stumbles and falls to the ground.

Hoseok quickly runs to her and picks her up with ease, a bright smile plastered onto his face.

“Were you so eager to greet Mandu that you fell?” he asks. Dahee's lips were already trembling from the shock, her eyes slowly filling with tears. “It didn't hurt, right?” he tries to manipulate her and walks back to where Mandu is waiting. “Wanna give him a snack?” he adds and brushes the dirt off her hands.

He made the right bet, as Dahees attention immediately switches back to the dog.

“Baby, are you okay?” Kihyun asks out of breath, who just caught up with them.

Dahee just just points to the dog, not really paying attention to her father as Hoseok gave her some treats for Mandu, who was staring at them in excitement, already drooling.

“Looks like she is okay” Hoseok says as he puts Dahee down and can't help but smile at his neighbour as relief washes over his face.

They watch as Dahee feeds Mandu with treats, the fat dog eagerly following Dahees hands like he hadn't had food for months while Dahee always drops the treats last minute, too scared of getting bitten.

“Soo... how come you're here? Aren't you usually still at work at this time?” Hoseok asks in a brave attempt to start a conversation, no longer able to take the uncomfortable silence that grew between them. He seems to have caught Kihyun off-guard as he looks a bit overrun by that question.

“I have decided to take some days off to spend more time with Dahee, that's why.” he answers, eyes suddenly hard and cold, ending the conversation just like that.

Hoseok sighs and turns his gaze back to his foster dog who tries to get more treats from Dahee whose hands are empty.

Dahee looks at Hoseok for a second before she quickly turns to her father, whispering something that neither Hoseok nor Kihyun were able to understand.

“You have to speak louder darling” Kihyun says, gaze warm and loving again, but he only earns a shy smile of the little girl and a shake of her head.

He crouches down to her, absent-mindedly petting Mandu who was expecting more treats from him while Dahee whispers something into his ear.

“You have to ask that yourself. You're a big girl now, aren't you? Time to do stuff yourself.” he answers her with an encouraging smile and shoves her in Hoseok's direction.

She mumbles something, but it was still too quiet so that he has to crouch down as well. “What did you say?” Hoseok asks and waits patiently.

“What's your name?” she repeats after a long sigh, not looking him in the eyes and nervously swaying back and forth.

“Oh, I see. You've forgotten my name because you were tired last time, mh?” he asks and smiles at her cheerily. “I'm Hoseok. And you're Dahee, right?”

A shy laugh bubbles up from her before she turns around to throws herself in her father's arms again. She is too cute.

“I'm pretty sure you had another question, didn't you?” Kihyun asks, a peaceful smile on his lips as he looks at the little girl in his arms.

With red cheeks, Dahee turns around again in a silly dance and looks at Hoseok again.

“Can I have more?” she asks after hesitating for a bit, nervously shoving her finger into her mouth (which Kihyun casually pulls out again. It seemed to be a thing that happened often.)

“More?” Hoseok asks confused, needs a second before he understands.

“Ah, you mean more treats?” He checks his pockets and indeed finds a few more.

“Mmmh... he actually had already enough for today, but if you take him for a walk a bit I think it won't harm him. Okay?”

Dahee nods and beams at him while he hands her the last few treats, that vanish quickly in Mandus stomach.

“Good boy” Dahee mumbles and tries to pet Mandu who was sniffing the ground, checking if maybe some treats fell to the ground that he had missed. Hoseok can't help but laugh. “Ah~ you're so cute!”

He grabs the leash and hands the end of it to Dahee. “And now you have to take him for a walk.”

The little girl looks up to her father as if she was looking for approval.

“You said you would, stand by your words.” Kihyun says strictly, but with a smile on his lips.

Encouraged, Dahee takes the leash and slowly starts to walk, carefully paying attention to Mandus pace.

“He won't suddenly go after some rabbits in the bushes or something, right?” Kihyun asks slightly worried, ready to launch after his daughter.

“I don't think so, he is actually very exhausted. It's a miracle Dahee doesn't have to drag him over the floor.”

Kihyun snorts at that, opening his mouth to say something but starts to cough instead.

“Oh oh, this doesn't sound good” Now that Hoseok takes a closer look, Kihyun doesn't look all too well. Kinda pale, his steps weaker than usual and now breathing through his mouth as well.

“Yeah, probably got what Dahee had, but the worst is over already.” he says and shrugs his shoulders. “Can't be helped. But you didn't get infected, right?”

Hoseok blushes at the unexpected, honest attention he suddenly received. “So far I am fine, don't worry.” he answers quickly, trying to appear composed. “But if you need some rest or something, let me know, I still have a few days off as well.”

“You're unbelievable” Kihyun starts, but his attention drifts to his daughter who started to walk very slowly and concentrated all of the sudden. “Dahee, do you need to go to the bathroom?” he asks, though it sounded like he already knew the answer.

“Dahee, I am talking to you. Do you need to pee?”

“No.”

Kihyun pursed his lips, his eyes not leaving his daughter.

 

“I actually wanted to ask you for a while now if I can cook you something one day? You don't have to eat with us, I could just bring some over and leave again, I just feel bad for not having a chance yet to make up for the favour you did for me.”

Hoseok had a hard time not to smile like an idiot. “I would love to come over and eat together!”

“Great! How about- Dahee?”

Said girl stopped in her tracks entirely, staring at Mandu.

“Shit.” Kihyun hisses under his breath and quickly picks his daughter up. “Dahee, please hold it in, we're nearly home!” he says and gives Hoseok Mandu's leash. “I am sorry, this is an emergency. See you Hoseok! Tell me when you have time for dinner” he shouts before he hurries to their apartment building.

Hoseok just stands there and stares at them. Kihyun had said his name. Without any formalities and all, but is name was is name. He is one step closer.

 

Unfortunately, having dinner with Kihyun and Dahee would have to wait for a while as Hoseok spends the next few days in his bed, as he had apparently caught whatever the tiny family had had as well.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Title taken from the song of the same name by The Statler Brothers.
> 
> Hu-uge thanks to Kiwi for beta reading and my bro for keeping me motivated ♥

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> If you have any suggestions or found a major mistake, don't hestitate to tell me since english isn't my first language and I'd like to improve.
> 
> Super duper extra thanks to my bro monstersandmen for keeping me motivated (◡‿◡✿)


End file.
